NEWS FEATURE: Church Ministers to Kids in Difficult Middle School Years

c. 2000 Religion News Service HUNTSVILLE, Ala. _ When picking up her two sons from school each day in southeast Huntsville, Sheri Clark often witnessed middle school-age students involved in some kind of fracas, injured from a fall or a fight, or being harassed by high school students. Nearly every afternoon Clark, a stay-at-home mom, […]

c. 2000 Religion News Service

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. _ When picking up her two sons from school each day in southeast Huntsville, Sheri Clark often witnessed middle school-age students involved in some kind of fracas, injured from a fall or a fight, or being harassed by high school students.

Nearly every afternoon Clark, a stay-at-home mom, ended up with a house full of neighborhood kids. She fed them snacks, bandaged scraped knees and called their working parents if something happened she couldn’t fix with a hug, some cookies or a Band-Aid.


Today Clark continues to hand out hugs, cookies and Band-Aids, but she’s getting paid _ albeit a nominal amount _ to do so as director of the after-school care program for middle school students at Aldersgate United Methodist Church in Huntsville.

“Kids that age need supervision and I saw the signs that they weren’t getting it,” said Clark, who teaches seventh- and eighth-graders in Sunday school at the church. “I just love middle school students and I felt led by the Lord to do this. We did a survey at two middle schools to see if there was an interest and we had 10 people return the forms. I sold the idea to my church, and they have really embraced it.”

A recent report by the U.S. Census Bureau found 6.9 million children ages 5 to 14 in the United States are routinely staying at home alone six hours per week. About 65 percent of that group is between 12 and 14 _ the most dangerous ages to leave children alone, according to Harvard Medical School pediatrics professor T. Berry Brazelton, author of “Irreducable Needs of Children.”

“We know from one study from the Academy of Pediatrics that young adolescents who don’t have supervision after school are more prone to truancy, drug addiction, early sexual activity and so on,” Brazelton said in an article, “Latchkey Blues” on ABCNEWS.com. He also said studies on the effects of being left home alone are in their infancy, and the impact can vary greatly among children.

“Every child is different, but I would be just as worried about a middle school child being home alone as an elementary school child,” he said, adding that 17 or 18 is a more appropriate age level to begin leaving kids at home alone. He recommends high-quality after-school programs for latchkey children, but emphasizes that family time is “the best way” to spend time together.

The Aldersgate after-school program is held at a house adjacent to the church property, which was purchased for use as a youth center. While there, the students do homework, practice their band instruments, and play games such as basketball, kick ball and ping pong.

Aldersgate not only offers after-school care, but provides transportation from two local middle schools.

Three years ago, Farley Community Church, also in southeast Huntsville, started an after-school care program for grades K-8. One van picked up between 12 and 15 students at two middle schools and transported them to the church’s temporary trailers.


Today, with more than 100 students, a paid staff of 16, a renovated school bus and a two-story building, the Farley program has by far exceeded anything the pastor, the Rev. David Blakeney, or the director, Donna Calloway envisioned.

“When we started the church, this was one of our first ministries,” said Blakeney. “It has gone way beyond my expectations. We did a demographic study before we even started the church (four years ago) and it was amazing to find so many families in this areas with two working parents, or who are single parents.

“Our emphasis was meeting community needs and felt this was a much-needed one.”

Blakeney, who formed a musical band with the seventh- and eighth-graders, has a devotional time with all the students each day at 3:30, followed by snacks, play time and homework time. Each Friday, the children do crafts and activities, or take field trips to places such as the skating rink.

Although the Huntsville city schools have an after-school care program for grades K-5, few after-school day care programs were available for middle school students.

The Aldersgate program costs $40 per student, but the church’s pastor, the Rev. Mitchell Williams said the goal is to reduce the cost and to add a second permanent staff member by the 2001-02 school year.

The Farley program costs $25 per week for one and $40 for two in a family. It runs from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. The summer program is also open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.


Vickie Prentiss, a single mom whose son, Tyler, attends the Aldersgate program, said it has “taken a load off my mind” to know he has transportation from school each day.

“With me working, I had to find a place for him to go after school,” she said. “It’s worked out real well for us. The kids are all about the same age and his social skills seem to be improving. He really seems to be enjoying it.”

Wynn DeVault, a sixth-grader, admits he didn’t want to go to the Aldersgate program, but says he now “looks forward to coming each day. I sometimes wish my parents would wait until later to pick me up.”

Melissa Brister, whose children, Stephen and Daniel, attend Kids Care, said the Farley program has been “a God-send.”

“I love it,” she said. “As soon as I found out about the program I enrolled my children. It was definitely tough for me to leave my children at home alone and I definitely think (middle school) kids need supervision.”

She also like the structure the Farley program provides, not to mention the safety factor.


“The kids are occupied and doing things such as homework,” she said. “We tried it for a year with him being at home alone, but I always worried about what would happen to him when he walked home from school. I would panic if I didn’t hear from him. Now I don’t have to worry about that.”

Until this school year, Farley van drivers were making two or three trips daily to four schools to pick up children. In March, Blakeney told the church members they could either expand the program with a bus, or remain stagnant. It wasn’t long before a member donated a bus.

“Every time we’ve needed something, God has provided,” said Calloway.

DEAEND BETOWT

Donate to Support Independent Journalism!

Donate Now!